When the Yankees lost out on Cliff Lee, their general manager Brian Cashman preached patience. And if anybody is buying into this it’s him. Despite missing out on Lee and the likely retirement of Andy Pettitte, Cashman has been interested in plenty of free agent starters without really being active.

Other pitchers he is supposedly interested in include Freddy Garcia, Bartolo Colon, Jeremy Bonderman, and Jeff Francis. This is the second time we’ve heard Francis’ name attached to the Yankees and their interest in the others seems lukewarm at best. So it may be fair to consider that Francis is their preferred target.

That makes sense too as out of all of those named above, Francis is the best combination of upside and actual likeliness to pitch next year. On top of that, he’s a lefty which would help not only in Yankee Stadium (because of it’s short porch in right field) but also against the left handed heavy Red Sox as well.

Patience seems to be the key word since Lee signed with the Phillies so this may take a while, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the Yankees increased their aggressiveness toward Francis in the upcoming days.

Let’s hear what you think. Out of the four pitchers named above, which would do you hope the Yankees will sign and why?